Today I Crunched Some Numbers...

Like the math nerd that I am, today I made a spreadsheet of all the students I have worked with since I started tutoring in 2010. Here are the numbers (it's way more than I thought!)

I have worked in 3 provinces.

I've worked in 2 schools, for a total of 7 years.

I worked with 7 students through 2 homeschool organizations.

I have worked with 30 homeschool kids from 16 families.

I've tutored kids from age 3 (Pre-School) to 19 (trade school).

I briefly tried tutoring 3 kids over 2 summers, unsurprisingly it did not go well.

I have tutored 7 students for more than 4 years.

The most tutoring students I have worked with in a school year is 27!

Moving and then Covid restrictions gave me a break for 2 years!

I've worked with 37 siblings from 14 families.

And I have tutored 92 different kids from 64 families!

Not Social Distancing

It's crazy times.  Who would have thought that we'd all be hunkering down at home not from a

natural disaster or some freak weather storm, but from an illness that came out of the blue.  I know

there are lots of people who are frightened about what the future holds, not just for during this time in

Quarantine, but after we come out of it. How many businesses will have to close?  How many jobs

won't exist anymore? How many of our loved ones will have become ill, or even died from the virus?

There's a lot of talk about physical health, but we need to also remember that our health is not just

based on if we have a fever or not. Health is a multi-faceted part of us.  We have to find a balance of

mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual health.

I don't like the "Social Distancing" line that has been thrown around, because that makes it sound

like we should be antisocial. We should be Physically Distant, but now is the time to be there for

each other.  This is an unprecedented time, and everyone is struggling with it in some way or

another. There are lots of extroverts who may get depressed if they can't socialize with others,

which can also lead to health problems. There are many who are anxious with what the future will

hold, which leads to sleeplessness and burnout.  Hopefully this will lead to a new normal where

people are more in tune with their mental health and it won't be such a stigma to say "I'm struggling.

I need help.".

I have hope that this will lead to some positive changes in many ways. This could change the way

we interact in our communities. Maybe instead of driving into our garages and not talking to our

neighbours, we'll start to really care about one another and look after the needs around us.

I've seen on FaceBook quite a few homeschooling parents telling all the parents who have suddenly

been thrown into quarantine schooling, that this isn't even normal for homeschoolers.  It's new

territory for everyone (pulling together, reassuring). They have said not to expect 6 hours of work

from your kids, most students do between 2-3 depending on what they are working on. That's

COMMUNITY!

It's important to remember these guidelines for adults working from home as well.  There are many

parts of your normal workday that help break up the stress, that you are missing right now. It's

important to take into account the coffee breaks, drive time, etc. Locking yourself off from the world

to work for 8 hours isn't healthy in a stressful time like this. It's really important to take care of your

body and mind (emotional, physical, mental,& spiritual health). Maybe it means working until

lunchtime, eating with the family, playing some board games, and going for a walk in the afternoon.

I'm sure you know that you can't do your best work if you're stressed.  Two hours of good work is

better than 6 hours of stress an anxiety riddled work. Work yourself into more hours as you get used

to this new normal. Take care of yourself, take care of your family, take care of your friends.

Remember, don't cut yourself off from everyone.  Social Distancing doesn't mean Social Isolation!

Call your friends, Play virtual poker, FaceTime that friend you haven't had time to connect with, Send

a message to say, "I was thinking about you... Remember when we went on that epic adventure?"

Ask how they are REALLY doing.  Let them know they are not alone. We're all in this together.

Moving Onwards and Upwards (North)

Time for another update!  It seems like my posts are getting fewer & farther between, but I think I have a solution to that problem.  It must be time to move!

Our church has been going through some restructuring over the past year, & as part of that process, decided to reduce to one full-time pastor.  So, Chad has received a job offer at a church in Lacombe, Alberta, & we decided it sounded like a pretty good move for our family.  We are ready to give up the city life & try our hand at country living for awhile!

The kids are really excited to have more room to explore, & trees to climb. They are already trying to talk us into buying ATVs for them. We're moving farther away from my parents again, but they had 4 years, & they like to travel, so we're just giving them the opportunity to explore a new area!  We'll be about 4 hours from Chad's family, so it'll be nice for the kids to be closer to their cousins too.

Now comes the stressful part.  Getting the house ready to sell, going to look for a new house, getting the kids registered at the new school, getting moving quotes (I'll tell you what company we're NOT using!), & figuring out all the logistics!  Our goal is to be there by Christmas, but how we'll manage that is yet to be seen.  I foresee a busy few months ahead, but it will be worth it!  I really enjoy setting up our home when we move, it's just getting to that point that isn't always fun.  Especially once the house is for sale & you have to keep cleaning all the things!

Twenty Years!

This post is all about the numbers...

Chad & I are celebrating our 20th Wedding Anniversary today, so I thought I'd compile some of the things we have done in the second half of my life!

We have had a few pets
2 cats
2 dogs
4 fish

plus lots of farm cats, some with names, some not.

 We've owned quite a few vehicles, & not one of them was wrecked!
1 SUV
2 Trucks
6 Cars
13 Motorbikes

Now, considering when I met Chad he was planning on being a farmer, which was perfect since I didn't want to move a lot, our life has not gone according to plan in that department!

We have lived in
1 State
3 Countries
4 Provinces

Many types of homes

1 Parsonage
1 Housesit
2 Co-Housing
4 Apartments

5 Houses

Which required
13 Change of Address Forms
10 Home phone numbers
8 Cell Phone Numbers

We have travelled quite a bit, & made it to
13 countries
19 Passports (including the kids')
11 years of documenting every trip outside of Canada for immigration (there were 28)

We have completed
4 Degrees
2 Certificates
(though none are mine, I still get to count them!)

We have had a total of
10 job titles
and worked for
14 Employers

We have hosted
5 homestay students
and we made
2 kids (We doubled the size of our family!)

Our life is certainly much different from what we had planned, but there's no one I'd rather be on this journey with! During one of the first major life-changing moves we were embarking on, one of my co-workers asked, "So, Chad's going to do that, but are you going to go with him?"

I answered, "Yes, of course I am. We're married!"

When my co-worker replied, "But that's not what you signed up for when you married him."

When we got married, I literally signed up for him. I never signed a contract to be a farmer's wife, or live in a certain place, but I did sign a vow that I'd be married to Chad for whatever comes in life, good or bad. We're not the same people we were when we got married 20 years ago (thankfully!), but all our experiences have brought us closer, since the only thing that has stayed the same through all of this is that we are in it together.

It will be interesting to see how the numbers will change in the next 20 years...

Oh Yeah, We're Moving!

I realized after my last post that I had not mentioned on the blog that we are moving!  In the last month there has been a lot going on!  PChad received a job offer from a church in British Columbia, & after a lot of prayer & consideration, we decided that is where God is calling us to be.  An added perk of moving is that we will be closer to both of our families, & only about an hour from my extended family!  I can see it now, dropping the kids off at Grandpa & Grandma's house, & saying, "Good luck, we'll see you in a week!"

So, we are busy getting moving quotes, getting our house cleaned up & put on the market, entertaining the kids now that school is over, singing the kids up for their new school in BC, etc, etc.  We are planning on leaving in about a month, & driving across the States, visiting family along the way.  We want to make it a fun vacation for the family, & make lots of memories.  Hopefully those memories will be good ones, not ones filled with arguing about legroom & who touched whom!

So, please pray for us in this next couple of weeks/months that we get all the things done that need to be done, & that we also have a chance to enjoy a bit of summer here in PEI before we leave.

Meeting Up With the Old Crew

Wednesday morning I headed out to try to get my phone sorted out.  I had brought along the pay-as-you-go phone we had bought in Ireland when we visited in 2008 hoping it would work, but it said there was no service.  I took the train to Liverpool Street & stopped into a phone shop nearby.  The told me to go to a different shop where they could see if the phone was unlocked.  At that shop they told me that the phone was sadly locked & sent me to another shop to get it unlocked.  The third shop was closed dispite it being 10am.  I asked at the shop next door, where they directed me to a fourth shop to get the phone unlocked.  The fourth shop was also closed, so I gave up & headed to Tottenham Court Road to see how I'd fare.

I quickly found a phone shop & asked about getting a new pay-as-you-go phone.  They had some cheap phones I could get for around £25, but that would be about $50 Canadian.  I decided to head to the nearby Starbucks & see about adding a travel plan on my phone from home, which I discovered I could do for $5.  It was a lot of running around, but it used up some of the extra time I had.

After all that fun I headed to Covent Garden for some shopping!  I picked up some souvenirs for everyone & then it was time to meet up with my old workmates from when we lived in London.

 

As I walked to the pub where we were supposed to meet, I took a few pictures of the street signs

Apparently there were a few people I worked with who do not check their facebook very often, & they had no idea I had named my daughter after the street!

This is one of my favourites!

Fiona & Mora worked on the Reception desk with me, & were always fun to work with.

Ian & Pete

 I had not seen these people in over 12 years!  It was far too long & we had  a great time catching up.  We had planned to meet up at 3 in the afternoon on Wednesday, figuring that the pub would be dead & we would have the run of the place.  Strangely, there was a power cut, so all the nearby businesses had been let out & everyone had the same great idea to head to the pub!  Despite having no power, the pub carried on serving drinks.  After a few hours the lights came back on & everyone cheered.  At the end of the night you could see that the dishwasher had not been working, as the entire bar was stacked with glasses!

“Pulling A Sherilyn”

When PChad & I lived in London, we lived with Geoff & Margaret, an older couple that we met at church.  They invited us to live with them since they had a big house & money was tight for us.  We gratefully accepted, & became part of the family.

At the time, I was working in a Solicitor’s office & I would get home from work around 8pm.  Since I had a work uniform, I’d often go upstairs & change into my pyjamas before supper, so Geoff & Margaret became accustomed to seeing me in my PJs relatively early in the evening.

One night, as PChad & I were watching TV after supper, Geoff popped his head in the TV room, & asked if it would be ok for him to put his pyjamas on.  “Of course!” we replied.  He came downstairs a few minutes later wearing a nightshirt, nightcap, & slippers…


We still stay in contact with Geoff & Margaret, & from time to time they let us know that Geoff still likes to ‘pull a Sherilyn’, meaning he gets his PJs on early.

Fashion Design

Chancery has been on a coloring streak making lots of little pictures of people & animals & cutting them out to tape on PChad’s office door.  She also tried her hand at making clothes for her dog Ginger.

 

Here is Ginger modeling a dress & crown.

 

Chancery seems to have abandoned that project since her creations weren’t holding up to her playing with them.  She has said many times though that she now wants to be a fashion designer.  Perhaps we’ll have to ask Grandma for some sewing lessons when we’re visiting this summer!

Stickers

As I mentioned a few years back, part of my job at the Western Shop where I worked, was to remove stickers from products we sold.  I still like sticker-free products so I often remove any stickers promptly.

 

A few days ago, the kids were given small pinwheels that had stickers on the sticks.  Chancery had started peeling the sticker off her stick, but couldn't get it to come off nicely.

 

This morning, she brought her pinwheel to me as I was lying in bed, & asked, “Mummy, can you take this sticker off for me?”

 

“Oh, you can just leave it on there,” I told her.

 

C: “No, I don’t want it on there!”

 

Me: “Well, then just do your best to get it off.”

(I figured that would keep her busy for a few minutes)

 

C: “But you are the best sticker picker ever!”

 

It’s nice to have your accomplishments recognized…

Alternate Payment

When we lived in Alberta, I worked at a Western Shop.  We sold everything from saddles & tack, to clothing & furniture.  A huge part of the business was conducted through mail-order, & I worked in that department.  My job involved taking orders over the phone, going through the store & collecting the various items, packing the orders & shipping them out.  I got really good at knowing what would fit in each box, & approximately how much each package would cost to ship with each various company.

 

We had 3 methods of delivery, Canada Post (which was generally slower & a bit pricey), Courier (super fast, but also pricey), or Greyhound (pretty cheap, depending where you lived, it could take as little as 1-2 days).  Most people who ordered chose to have their items shipped with Greyhound, which was fine with us.  They had a flat rate for small items, so it was easy to know what to charge the customer, & the people were really nice who ran the local depot.

 

After working at the store for a few months, my supervisor realized that in our contract with Greyhound, the local depot was supposed to come & pick up our parcels daily.  When we talked to the people there, they said that they didn’t actually have the people available to do that.  There was generally only one person in the depot at a time. 

 

After a lot of negotiation, it was decided that they could pick up our parcels at 1:00pm everyday, they’d just have to have an employee come over just at the shift change.  It was a nice change to not have to stop what we were doing twice a day to deliver our parcels to the depot, but there was a 10am bus that we were missing every morning due to their pick-up availability.  So, I kept bringing the parcels for the morning bus, & sometimes I’d bring another load for the 3:30pm bus.  Quite often we’d end up calling the depot to tell them we didn’t have anything to pick up at 1:00, since I had already brought everything for the morning bus.  But by 3:30 we’d have another load, so off I’d go.

 

As the summer wore on, the lure of the drinks cooler at the depot got more & more tempting.  I never carried cash at that time, since debit cards were accepted everywhere, it was never really a problem, but there was a sign on the register which read, “No credit/debit for transactions under $10.”  So, I resisted for awhile, but one hot day, I HAD to have a lemonade, so I took one out of the cooler, walked over to the register & asked, “I know the sign says it’s not allowed, but could you make an exception, just this once?”

 

The cashier (who also owned the depot) replied, “Well, it would actually cost me less to GIVE you the lemonade than it would to ring it through, so you can have it.”

 

A few days later, I remembered to bring cash, & after unloading my truck I grabbed a lemonade & went to the register.  The cashier told me, “Just take it, in fact you might as well just take one everyday since you’re making it easier on us by bringing everything here.”

 

And that is how I got paid in lemonade, for delivering western tack to the bus depot.

Ambitions

During snack-time yesterday, the kids started talking about where they wanted to live, so I thought it was the perfect time to save their life ambitions for posterity.  Now we can look back in 20 years & see if they’ve met their goals.

Career Aspirations

My friend Natasha was riding in the truck with us this morning, & asked Asher what he’d like to be when he grows up.

 

Asher: “I want to be a person who works at Tim Horton’s!”

Chancery had to let us know that she had given some thought to the subject as well.

 

Chancery: “And I want to be a big man when I grow up!”

 

Natasha: “Well, that might be a bit difficult.  Do you think you could be a lady when you grow up instead?”

 

Chancery: “Yes.”

 

****

I was telling PChad about the conversation over lunch, & the kids told PChad their vocational choices.  Chancery still wanted to be a ‘big man’…

 

PChad informed her, “You are going to be a lady when you grow up, Chancery.”

 

“I want to be a BIG lady!” she retorted.

 

So I asked her, “Do you want to be a big, important lady, or a big, fat lady?”

 

Chancery responded with enthusiasm, “I want to be a big FAT lady!!!”

Figure of Speech

At lunch today, PChad was making plans for his afternoon.  He said, “Well, I’d better take off now.”

 

Asher then piped up, “I want to go on the airplane with you, Daddy!”

 

It took us a minute to figure out why Asher thought PChad was going to be flying somewhere.  Asher was a bit disappointed when we explained to him that PChad was merely going to a meeting.

 

**************************

 

After he got back home, Asher wanted to try on PChad’s motorbike helmet.  He put it on, stated, “I’m going to a meeting now!” and began running around the house making motorbike sounds.

 

He knows his Daddy well…

Too Smart For His Own Good

In Walmart a few weeks ago, I was calling for Asher to come since he had wandered a bit further afield than I was comfortable with.  It takes a bit to get his attention sometimes, so I called, “Asher… ASHER… ASHER!!!”

 

An employee who was in the vicinity heard me calling him & asked, “What’s his name?”

 

About that time, Asher had joined me & answered for himself, “My name is Asher! A-S-H-E-R”

 

Then he began to sing for her…

♪♫ “There was a Daddy had a boy & Asher was his name-o!

A-S-H-E-R, A-S-H-E-R, A-S-H-E-R, and Asher was his name-O!” ♪♫

 

The woman said, “I like that name, I’ve never heard it before!”

 

At that moment I thought I of saying, “Really?  Because I feel like we’re here all the time!”

 

Then, since Asher’s song had garnered such attention for him, he started to act goofy to entertain the lady some more.

 

She then commented, “He should stay here tonight, we’d be entertained!”

 

Asher tried to jump on that bandwagon, but I told him that he was only allowed to stay if he got a job, to which he replied, “I’m not old enough to work here!”

Our Summer In Burdett

Looking outside right now, it’s hard to imagine the warmth of summer, especially with 2 feet of snow covering the front lawn.  I was recently looking through some old pictures & decided I’d bring some summer to my blog.

*************

When PChad was in Seminary, one of the requirements was to do a summer assignment at a church.  We were assigned to a small church in the middle of nowhere Southern Alberta.  While we were there, I took a break from corporate life & enjoyed some holidays.  PChad took a break from school, and pastored the church.




I thoroughly enjoyed being able to take advantage of fields & wide open spaces.  I’m a country girl at heart!















And every now & then, PChad would take a break & enjoy it with me too.



The parsonage came supplied with two Momma cats, so we were able to enjoy a fresh batch of kittens shortly after we arrived.













One of the parishioners loaned us a puppy (with the hope that we’d become attached & take it back to Michigan with us), so we were able to hit the “puppy stage” that is a vital step on the road to becoming parents…









…and we named her “Prairie”.







After our time commitment was over, we headed to PChad’s parents for a few weeks, and had the opportunity to take our niece & nephew camping for a few days.

        All in all, it was a great summer.  We had a great placement, and felt really welcomed by the community, and as an added bonus, we got to spend some time with PChad’s family.

You Know You're Tired When..........

When I look back at my high school days, I am amazed at the energy I had.  My schedule looked something like this:

5:30 -Wake up & get ready.  Leave the house by 6:00.

6:30 - 9:30 -Work at Espresso Stand, do any homework that hadn't gotten finished yet.
9:30 - 2:15 -School
2:30 - 4:00 -Track practice
4:30 -9:00 -Work at McDonald's

Then I'd go home & be in bed around 9:30.  I also worked at McDonald's on Saturdays & some Sunday afternoons/evenings.

The early mornings weren't so bad, maybe b/c once I got to the coffee shop I loaded up on caffeine. But the thing that I really remember about that time was the dreams I would have.

I dreamed about sleeping on the couch that was in the back of my History class.  I dreamed about sleeping in my car.  I dreamed about sleeping in my bed at home, and I dreamed about sleeping on the couch at my friend's house.

Maybe because I knew that I wasn't ACTUALLY getting enough sleep, I tricked myself into believing I had, since I had dreamed about having naps all the time.  I don't remember being tired at all, but I still remember those dreams quite clearly.......

Active Imagination

While the below post is a scenario that came purely from Asher's imagination, perhaps we should expose him to a bit more in some areas. Asher likes to wear hats. When he does, he has to be referred to as a worker man. Sometimes, the worker man has done all his work for the day, & sometimes he still has work to do.

He commonly puts his hat on & says, "I'm a workerman! I have WORK to do!" And then he rushes off to his room.................

....and sits down at his desk.

It might be time to explain that not all people have desk jobs.

Uniformity

About 5 years ago, I worked at a medical office, where to say the office manager was unique would be a severe understatement. I started out working in the file room, since I had no previous experience in the medical field, & apparently only people really desperate for jobs apply for such a position.

When I first started, I was told that the dress-code merely stated we were not permitted to wear jeans or shorts. I went to the nearest charity shop & grabbed myself a few pairs of khakis & teamed them up with t-shirt from my closet & called it good.

All went merrily for the first 6 or 7 months, when suddenly the office manager decided we should wear uniforms. We were told we would now be required to wear khaki or white trousers, paired with a lovely, plain navy t-shirt, which she decreed she would not order anything smaller than a large. A few of us tried to reason with her to no avail, she wouldn't budge. So we decided to make the best of it..... They were HUGE! We knew we looked ridiculous, but there was nothing we could say or do to get her to admit that something should be done.

About a year later, after many patients commented on how unprofessional we looked, she finally decided it was time for new uniforms. I think what finally tipped her off, was the letter a patient sent in to one of the doctors stating that we all looked like greenhouse workers.

The new uniform was an improvement, a pale blue polo shirt, in an array of sizes including S-XXL. This new top was to be worn only with white trousers, which required the implementation of "The Underwear Rule".

The Underwear Rule stated:
-one MUST wear underwear.
-said underwear is to be full-bottomed (no thongs)
-all underwear must be plain white (no polka-dots, stripes, and no 'nude' coloured panties)

This, of course, sent me once again to the charity stores, for I was unaccustomed to wearing white trousers & they are not the easiest thing to find when you're on a budget & it's the middle of winter.

Not long after, I discovered I was pregnant. Lucky for me, there was always a steady stream of employees leaving for greener pastures. So I just asked them if they wouldn't mind handing over their old uniform shirts & slowly progressed from a size S to XL over the course of the next 9 months. And since most of the white trousers I had found in the charity shops were meant for a generation older than I, they had elastic waistbands which worked a charm.

There was a brief moment of insanity in which our office manager contemplated the implementation of a "shirts must be tucked in" rule (she was nothing, if not a control-freak), but we quickly showed her the folly of such a rule.

How Do You Feed YOUR Pets?

When I was in highschool I worked at McDonald's. I loved the job b/c my position was "first booth". I was stationed in the first booth of the drive-thru, so all my job entailed was taking orders & money. I didn't have to worry about complaints or the grease from the grill that is all-pervasive & seems to cause an influx of acne in it's employees (though maybe that's just b/c the employees are pubescent).

After awhile I got to know the regulars, but there was one guy who came through daily & all he would say was, "I'll have the $10.56 special." I have to admit, that the first few times I had no idea what he was talking about & it took me awhile to memorize his order, but over 10 years later, here's what it was:

10 Cheeseburgers w/o Onions
10 Packets of Mustard
2 Cheeseburgers
1 Large Diet Coke w/o ice

And the total came to: $10.56 (of course it's probably more than that now... oy, I'm getting old!)

He had two Shar-Pei's that were always in the car w/ him trying to escape out of the window to get a good sniff of me, or a pat on the head. He also always had the exact change. As he would hand it over, I'd inevitably end up with a few furballs as well. He was a man you would characterize as a "sweaty old guy", but he was usually quite pleasant during our brief exchanges.

After a few months I finally worked up the courage to ask what the order was all about & this was his reply:

The 2 regular cheeseburgers were for himself & the 10 packets of mustard would go on those. The 10 cheeseburgers w/o onions were for his dogs & if he gave them onions, they'd stink him out. He figured that out fairly early on (lucky for him!).

I have no idea if these dogs were also fed normal dog food, or if they just each had 5 cheeseburgers everyday. I was to grossed out thinking about 5 packets of mustard on a cheeseburger to ask anymore questions at that point.

But at $10.56 every day, you'd think that not only would regular dog food be better for the dogs (was his vet not aware?), but also cheaper! He probably could have afforded the high end stuff at that price!

NINE Years!

It's hard to believe, but Chad & I have been married nine years today. Neither one of us would have been able to predict what has happened in the last nine years. Chad was going to be a farmer, & I his farmin' wife. He had 3 years of University to finish when we got married, we actually moved out onto the farm after a year of living in town, & life was good. We thought we'd wait until he was finished school before we started having kids b/c it was easier that way & I wasn't allowed to work for the first year & 1/2 b/c of immigration laws.

After he finished his Bachelor's degree, we felt that God was calling us to something different for awhile, but figured we'd still eventually come back to the farm. Chad's interests were in Economics & Philosophy, so we kind of put God to the test & applied to the only 2 schools in the world that had combined Master degree programs, figuring Chad wouldn't make it into them..... He got into both. One at Erasmus University in Rotterdam, Netherlands, & the other at the London School of Economics in London, England. After much deliberation, we decided to go to London & spent the next 14 months in England.

Without having many connections over there, we quickly learned to rely on God. We had no place to live after the first 6 weeks, housing was expensive, & I was only able to get a part-time job b/c of the working culture over there. One night after a church service, Chad happened to speak to a visitor from just outside of the city, who was enamoured w/ Canada & they got to chatting about out housing situation. Without even checking w/ his wife, he invited us to come & live w/ them!

We took them up on the offer b/c we didn't really have any other viable options at that time & we quickly became part of their family. They made us feel very welcomed & really showed us God's love during the next year.

At the end of Chad's Master's program we had two options for our future:
1. Chad was offered a PhD position in Logic at King's University College, London, which would basically take 2-3 years & lead to him becoming a professor.
2. We could go back to the farm in Alberta as we had planned.

Neither option really seemed to be what we were supposed to do, so one night, Chad asked God to tell him where we were supposed to go & God laid it on his heart to go into the ministry. Not exactly what we had in mind, but God had really been working in our lives through the family we were living with & made it possible for us to see it as a possibility (but it was still totally out of the blue). At this point we had been married 4 years & Chad had changed his major at least 4 times, so I don't think I really thought he'd end up as a minister. I still figured it would lead to something else, since that seemed to be the pattern.

Now, here we are, married 9 years, expecting our 2nd child next month & Chad's taking his first call as a minister! We figured we'd have 3-4 kids by now, live at the farm/feedlot, & we'd be established in life, but instead we are just starting out! Ten years after Chad's highschool graduation, he's taking his first job w/ benefits!

It has really taught us that you can't foresee the future, only God knows where He's going to take you & you have to trust Him at every turn. That year we spent in England was one of the best we've had b/c it taught us to depend on eachother & rely on God. For the first 6 weeks we were there I earned £198/week, & our rent was £200/week. We were using money we had saved from home in Canada for our food, but the exchange rate was C$2.50 = £1.00, so to conserve our resources we were sharing a can of frank&beans for dinner, or Spaghetti-Os, or a package of Raman Noodles.... Times were lean, but we had the best time walking around together exploring the big city in our cowboy boots & God brought us to a great place b/c we trusted Him.